Method and system for providing guidance data

ABSTRACT

Described herein is a system and method for providing entity investment guidance via a communication network. The system includes a server, at least one entity-issued disclosure received by the server via the communication network and a storage accessible by the server. The storage includes at least one forecast data extracted from the at least one entity disclosure, said forecast data indicative of a projection of an entity performance parameter, and a context file for each of the forecast data, the context file including at least a portion of the entity disclosure associated with the forecast data. Also included in the system is a user interface in communication with the server, wherein the server generates an investment guidance display of the forecast data and the context file and transmits the display to the user interface via the communication network.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority benefits under 35 § U.S.C. 119(e) ofthe U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/557,667, filed on Mar. 30, 2004.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to investment decision-support systems, and morespecifically to a system and method for the collection and delivery ofinvestment guidance for one or more business entities.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The securities industry in the United States is governed by a regulatoryframework based on the concept that all investors and other interestedparties should have access to certain basic facts about an investmentprior to buying it. To achieve this, the Securities and ExchangeCommission (“SEC”) requires public corporations to disclose meaningfulfinancial and other information to the public. In addition to what isrequired by the SEC, many corporations release a wide range ofinformation to investors and other interested parties regarding thepresent and future performance of the corporation. Parties may then usethis information to judge for themselves if a corporation's securitiesare a good investment.

Corporate financial guidance (“Guidance”) is the primary means by whichcorporations communicate their plans, goals, and expectations toinvestors and other interested parties. Guidance may be conveyed throughvarious events and mediums such as press releases, earnings conferencecalls, conference presentations, analyst meetings, and SEC filings.Guidance is most commonly conveyed in an unstructured format usingwritten or spoken prepared text or as answers to analysts' questions.

Although the guidance is generally made public, there are few means inthe investor-relations marketplace for investors or other interestedparties to obtain comprehensive company-issued guidance from a singlesource. When company-issued guidance events and mediums are obtained,parties must sort through the large amount of information contained inthe various events and mediums to determine the relevant guidance data.

It is therefore desired to provide a system and method for collectingand storing investment guidance data to enable investors and/or otherinterested parties to quickly access data relevant to their investmentdecision. It is a further desired to provide a system and method forproviding context to the guidance data and a means to determine theaccuracy and reliability of the guidance data.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According, it is an object of the present invention to provide asingle-source comprehensive database of company-issued guidance orforecast data for delivery to investors and/or other interested parties.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide detailed andrelevant guidance data to investors and/or other interested parties in aformat that is substantially easier and faster than reading the guidancedata source documents.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the guidancedata to investors and/or other interested parties with context toindicate the source of the guidance data.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a guidance orforecast rating to provide investors and/or other interested partieswith an indication of the reliability and accuracy of the guidance datareceiving from a particular corporation or entity.

These and other objectives are achieved by providing a system forproviding investment guidance via a communication network including aserver, at least one entity-issued disclosure received by the server viathe communication network, and a storage accessible by the server. Thestorage includes at least one forecast data extracted from the at leastone entity disclosure, the forecast data indicative of a projection ofan entity performance parameter, and a context file for each of theforecast data, the context file including at least a portion of theentity disclosure associated with the forecast data. Also included inthe system is a user interface in communication with the server, whereinthe server generates an investment guidance display of the forecast dataand the context file and transmits the display to the user interface viathe communication network.

Other objects of the present invention are achieved by provision of asystem for providing entity investment guidance via a communicationnetwork, including a server, at least one entity-issued disclosurereceived by the server via the communication network, and a storageaccessible by the server. The storage includes at least one forecastdata extracted from the at least one entity disclosure, the forecastdata indicative of a projection of an entity performance parameter, atleast one actual data extracted from at least one entity disclosure, theactual data indicative of an actual entity performance parameter, and anentity forecast rating generated from a comparison of the forecast datato the actual data. Also included in the exemplary system is a userinterface in communication with the server, wherein the server generatesan investment guidance display of the forecast data, the actual data,and the entity forecast rating and transmits the display to the userinterface via the communication network.

Further objects of the present invention are achieved by provision of asystem for providing entity investment guidance via a communicationnetwork including a server, at least one entity-issued disclosurereceived by the server via the communication network, at least oneanalyst data received by the server via the communication network, theanalyst data indicative of a projection of an entity performanceparameter, and a storage accessible by the server. The storage includesat least one forecast data extracted from the at least one entitydisclosure, the forecast data indicative of a projection of an entityperformance parameter, the analyst data, and an entity forecast ratinggenerated from a comparison of the forecast data to the analyst data.Further included in the system is a user interface in communication withthe server, wherein the server generates an investment guidance displayof the forecast data, the analyst data, and the entity forecast ratingand transmits the display to the user interface via the communicationnetwork.

In some exemplary embodiments according to the present invention, theforecast data is partitioned in the storage based on a time period ofthe entity disclosure. Furthermore, the investment guidance display insome embodiments illustrates an initial set of the forecast data from afirst portion of at least one of the time periods, which is presented ina first manner on the display, a revised set of the forecast data from asecond portion of at least one of the time periods, which is presentedin a second manner on the display, and a variance of the forecast dataover each of the at least one of the time periods, which is presented ina third manner on the display. Additionally illustrated in someembodiments is the context file, the actual data, or the analyst datafor the at least one of the time periods presented in a fourth manner onthe display.

In other respects, the present invention is concerned with the provisionof a method for providing investment guidance based on entity-issueddisclosure, including the steps of receiving at least one entity-issueddisclosure, generating a transcript of the at least one entity-issueddisclosure, extracting a forecast data and an actual data from thetranscript, and storing the forecast data and the actual data in astorage. Further included are the steps of generating an entity forecastrating based on a comparison of the forecast data to the actual data andgenerating an investment guidance display of the forecast data, actualdata, and entity forecast rating.

Other objects, features and advantages according to the presentinvention will become apparent from the following detailed descriptionof certain advantageous embodiments when read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings in which the same components are identified by thesame reference numerals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a system for providing entity investmentguidance in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary flow chart illustrating a method for providinginvestment guidance based on entity disclosures employed by the systemof FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a screen shot of an exemplary investment guidance displaygenerated by the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is another screen shot of exemplary investment guidance displaygenerated by the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is another screen shot of an exemplary investment guidancedisplay generated by the system of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a system 100 for providingentity investment guidance according to the present invention. Thesystem 100 includes a communication network 110. The communicationnetwork 110 may be, for example, the Internet. The system 100 furtherincludes a server 120.

The system 100 includes at least one data source, e.g., data sources 130and 132. The data source 130 may be an entity-issued data sourcetransmitting at least one entity disclosure to the server via thecommunication network. The entity disclosure may be any means ofproviding entity or corporation-issued guidance including, for example,a press release, a publication, a conference call, or an SEC filing.

The system 100 preferably retrieves and processes all entity disclosuresthat may be of interest to investors and/or other interested parties.The entity disclosures may include, for example, projections andestimations of the corporation's financial performance (e.g., forecastdata), actual financial performance (e.g., actual data), andnon-financial information and any other type of investment guidance.

The entity disclosure may include quantitative or qualitativedisclosures of an entity or corporation. For example, the entitydisclosure may include a quantitative projection of a futureearnings-per-share or “EPS” (e.g., we believe EPS in the 4^(th) quarterwill be between $1.00 and $1.05) or a qualitative projection (e.g., webelieve EPS will rise significantly in the 4^(th) quarter). The entitydisclosure may further be in any format known to those of ordinary skillin the art, including, but not limited to, a written document, acomputer file, a live audio or video transmission, an audio recording,and a video recording.

Some embodiments according to the present invention include the seconddata source 132, which may be an analyst data source transmitting atleast one analyst data to the server via the communication network. Theanalyst data is indicative of a projection of an entity performanceparameter (e.g., measure) provided by an analyst external to the entity.The entity performance parameter may include but is not limited to, anearnings-per-share, a revenue, an income, a profit, a capitalexpenditure index (“CAPEX”), or a combination thereof.

Shown in FIG. 1, the system 100 includes a storage 140 accessible by theserver. The storage may be any data storage means known to those ofordinary skill in the art. The storage 140 includes forecast dataextracted from entity disclosures. The forecast data is indicative of aprojection of an entity performance parameter. In some embodiments, thestorage 140 further includes actual data extracted from the number ofentity disclosures. The actual data is indicative of an actual entityperformance parameter. In some other embodiments, the storage 140 alsoincludes the above described analyst data.

The storage 140 may also include a context file for each of the forecastdata. The context file includes a portion of the entity disclosure (or ahyperlink thereto) associated with the forecast data. The context fileprovides a user of the system 100 with context to the receivedquantitative and qualitative forecast data. For example, the contextfile may comprise a portion of text including the forecast data asextracted from a press release, conference call, or any other entitydisclosure.

The storage 140 may include any number of partitions and/or databases.The storage 140 may include various partitions of data (e.g., forecastdata, actual data, analyst data) sorted by the date on which the datawas transmitted to the server or the time period to which the datarefers. For example, the forecast data may be sorted by day, month,quarter, and/or fiscal year. The forecast data may be furtherpartitioned to include provision for historical forecast data and/oractual data.

The storage 140 may also be partitioned or categorized by data type. Forexample, the storage 140 may include several data categories orclassifications including, but not limited to: financial statementguidance or forecasts, industry outlook, legal disclosures,non-financial data, capital gains, and financing. Furthermore, thestorage 140 may include data relating to any number of entities. Suchentities may then be categorized or classified in the storage 140 basedon an industry sector (e.g., using Global Industry ClassificationStandards (“GICS”) industry codes). For example, entity categories mayinclude: energy, materials, industrials, consumer discretionary,consumer staples, healthcare, financials, information technology,telecommunication services, and utilities.

Some exemplary embodiments of the system 100 may generate one or moreentity forecast ratings and store the entity forecast rating(s) in thestorage 140. The forecast rating provides a user with a means todetermine the reliability or accuracy of the forecast data, i.e., whichentities give historically good forecasts or guidance, and whichcontinually miss forecast estimates. For example, a first entityforecast rating may be generated from a comparison of the forecast datato the actual data. Additionally, a second entity forecast rating may begenerated from a comparison of the forecast data to the analyst data.The entity forecast ratings are stored in the storage 140.

Further included in the system 100 is at least one user interface 150 incommunication with the server. The user interface 150 may include acomputer, a monitor, and/or any other user interface known to those ofordinary skill in the art. The user interface 150 allows a user toaccess the system 100 and the various data described above. Furthermore,the user interface 150 allows a user to receive and view information,such as an investment guidance display as generated by the server 120and transmitted to the user interface 150. A user may receive otherinformation via the user interface such as alerts. Alerts may includethe announcement (e.g., via email) of a new entity disclosure, newforecast data, new actual data, and/or new analyst data.

The investment guidance display may be transmitted to the user interfacevia a website or Internet browser accessed through the communicationnetwork (e.g., Microsoft Internet Explorer or Apple Safari). Theinvestment guidance display may also be transmitted to the userinterface 150 via email. In some embodiments of the present invention, auser may specify a frequency for which to receive an investment guidancedisplay, or other information in the storage 140, via email. Forexample, the investment guidance display according to the presentinvention may include a selectable characteristic (not shown) fordefining one or more time periods for which to transmit the display. Auser may choose to receive the display or other information at aspecified time each day (e.g., at market closing).

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary flow chart illustrating a method 200 forproviding investment guidance based on entity disclosures employed bythe system of FIG. 1. The method 200 is described with reference to thesystem 100 shown in FIG. 1. However, the method 200 may be used incombination with other similar systems and/or apparatuses known to thoseof skill in the art.

The method 200 includes a first step 201 of receiving or scheduling atleast one entity disclosure. Scheduling includes finding qualifyingfuture entity disclosures (e.g., events, press releases, conferencecalls, SEC filings, etc). The step may also include determining if anentity disclosure should be processed and reevaluating already scheduledentity disclosures based on changes in data. In some embodiments, step201 may further include transmitting an alert or otherwise notifyingadministrators of the system 100 of an upcoming entity disclosure.

Step 203 of the method 200 includes generating a transcript of theentity disclosure. For example, an audio or video entity disclosure maybe converted into a text transcript to facilitate processing. The step203 may be a virtual step of receiving a transcript if a particularentity disclosure already exists in text format.

Step 205 includes extracting forecast data and actual data from thetranscript. For example, the content of the disclosure event may bebroken down into portions and each portion identified as candidates forcontaining relevant forecast and/or actual data. The forecast and/oractual data is then extracted from the entity disclosure. In someembodiments, non-financial data may further be extracted.

An optional step 207 of verifying the forecast data and the actual datamay be included in the method 200. For example, a quality control (“QC”)process may be performed on the data. The system may determine if QC isnecessary or determine that the step 207 may be skipped. Step 207 mayresult in changes or corrections to the data.

The forecast data and actual data is then stored (e.g., absorbed) into astorage (step 209). The step 209 may include a selection of the relevanttime period of the data, an inputting of one or more values for thedata, and the inputting of a basis of the values. For example, aforecast data such as a projected earnings-per-share may be stored as anindividual value or a range of values referring to a particular timeperiod (e.g., a current or upcoming quarter or fiscal year). Theforecast data may include a basis (e.g., a context file), such as areference or link to the particular entity disclosure from which theforecast data was extracted.

A further step of auditing the data (not shown) may follow the storageof the data. The step of auditing the data may include generating anaudit report, reviewing the audit report, and identifying errors in thedata. The data may then be corrected and the corrections stored in thestorage. An explanatory comment may also be stored with the corrections.

Step 211 includes generating an entity forecast rating for the data. Asdescribed above, the entity forecast rating is based on a comparison ofthe forecast data to actual data. In some embodiments, the entityforecast rating may be based on a comparison of the forecast data toanalyst data. The entity ratings are then stored in the storage. In step213, an investment guidance display of the forecast data, actual data,and entity forecast rating is generated.

FIG. 3 shows a screen shot of an exemplary investment guidance display300 generated by the system of FIG. 1. The particular display 300 is aspreadsheet data display. The display has a title 302 including, forexample, a company name, stock ticker symbol, and units information forthe data. In some embodiments, the title 302 may also include anindustry classification and/or sub-industry classifications of theentity.

The display 300 includes any number of columns (e.g., columns 310-318).The columns include headings 320-328 providing reference to the timeperiods for which forecast data and actual data is shown (e.g., Q1 2004or the 1^(st) Quarter of fiscal year 2004). The column headings 320-328further include reference to the provision of forecast data (e.g.,guidance or “GUI”) and actual data (“ACT”).

The display 300 further includes any number of rows 330 with each rowincluding a data type heading (e.g., 332-338). For example, the datatype heading 332, or “EPS,” represents the provision ofearnings-per-share data. Within the EPS row, forecast data and actualdata is provided for each quarter of the fiscal year 2004. For example,the values 0.27-0.31 of forecast data are provided for the 1^(st)quarter of 2004. As described above, such values of forecast datarepresent the forecast data in the storage 140 having been extractedfrom disclosure events.

The display 300 also includes provision for the display of a contextfile for each of the forecast data including at least a portion of theentity disclosure associated with the forecast data (not shown). Forexample, each of the forecast data represented on the display 300 mayinclude a hyperlink to the associated context file. Alternatively, or incombination, the context file may appear on the display 300 when a userpositions a computer mouse icon over the forecast data.

The Interperiod Revisions, or data type subheading 340, referencerevisions to the projected EPS as extracted from subsequent disclosureevents. Any number of Interperiod Revisions may be included in thedisplay 300. For example, the display 300 shows values of forecast datafor the 4^(th) quarter of 2004 including EPS between 0.34 and 0.38. Theforecast data was later revised (e.g., due to a subsequent disclosureevent) to 0.20-0.27 and again to 0.22-0.27. As shown, the actual EPS atthe end of the 4^(th) quarter of 2004 was 0.37.

Further included in the rows 330 is “Non-Financial Guidance.” As shown,the Non-Financial Guidance may include data type headings such as thedata type heading 338 (or “Product Outlook”). The Non-Financial Guidancemay further include Industry Outlook, Organizational, CorporateDevelopment, Capital Plans, Legal, and any other known non-financialdata type. The display 300 may provide a value or range of values for aquantitative non-financial data type (e.g., the Product Outlook or 338).However, the display 300 includes provision for the display qualitativeor non-numeric data. For example, an icon 350 (e.g., “G”) is provided toindicate the existence of non-numeric data and the icon 350 may includea hyperlink (Or any other reference) to such data.

In some embodiments, the values shown in the display 300 are color coded(not shown) to reflect up and down trends. For example, the value(s) maybe red if a particular data type (e.g., EPS) is currently on a downtrend, green if the data type is on an up trend, or black if there is nopresent change in the data type.

FIG. 4 shows another screen shot of an exemplary investment guidancedisplay 400 generated by the system of FIG. 1. The particular display400 is an “interactive chart” investment guidance display. The display400 provides quantitative data from the storage 140 for the purpose ofproviding a visual context to the forecast and actual data. As one ofordinary skill in the art will understand, the interactive chart ordisplay 400 may show the same data as a spreadsheet display (e.g., thedisplay 300), although in a different form.

The display 400 includes a title 402, a data-type selector 404, and atime period selector 406. The display 400 further includes a first chartportion 408 and a second chart portion 410 (e.g., a focus period). Auser may customize the display 400 by selecting a type of data via thedata type selector 404. For example, a user may choose to display EPS,CAPEX, Total Revenue, EBITDA (“Earnings Before Interest, Tax,Depreciation and Amortization”), Operating Earnings, and/or Pro-Form aEPS on the display 400. When a data type is selected using the data typeselector 404, a first Y-Axis header 412 displays the data type and thecorresponding units of the data type. The range of the values in thefirst Y-Axis header 412 will vary depending on the specific data type.The display 400 also includes a corresponding first X-Axis header 414displaying four periods of data (e.g., quarters or fiscal years).

Within the second chart portion 410, the display 400 includes a secondY-axis header 416 and a second X-Axis header 418. The second X-Axisheader 418 includes only one period of data (e.g., one quarter or onefiscal year). Therefore, the second chart portion 410 may display datafor a period equal to the total of the individual periods of first chartportion 408. Alternatively, the second chart portion 410 may displaymore detailed data for any one of the periods shown in the first chartportion 408.

As shown in the first chart portion 408, an initial set 430 of forecastdata is displayed in a first manner (e.g., a shading). As one ofordinary skill in the art will understand, the initial set 430represents forecast data including a projected EPS between 0.195 and0.25 for the 1^(st) Quarter of 2003. Also provided in the first chartportion is a revised set 432 of the forecast data which is displayed ina second manner on the display. The revised set 432 represents forecastdata including a projected EPS between 0.21 and 0.245. For example, therevised set 432 may be a result of a subsequent disclosure event inwhich the entity (e.g., eBay) issued a new projection of EPS for the1^(st) quarter of 2003.

The position of the revised set 432 on the first chart portion 408provides information as to the date on which the subsequent disclosureevent was issued. As shown, the revised set 432 appears to have beenextracted from a disclosure event issued at a time approximately halfway through the 1^(st) quarter of 2003. The first chart portion 408 mayfurther include any number of additional revised sets, such as therevised set 434.

The graphical representation of the initial set 430 and each of therevised sets 432 and 434 provides a user with a quick and easyrepresentation of the variance of the forecast data over each of thequarters and the fiscal year. However, a numerical representation of thevariance (e.g., as a percentage) may be further provided on the display400.

Also shown in the display 400 is actual data for each of the quartersand the fiscal year (i.e., in the first chart portion 408 and the secondchart portion 410 respectively). For example, actual data 436representing an actual EPS of approximately 0.235 is shown for the1^(st) quarter of 2003. As shown, the actual data 436 falls within eachof the initial set 430 (i.e., the initial projected EPS) and the revisedsets 432 and 434 (e.g., subsequent projected EPS).

As similarly described above in reference to FIG. 3, embodiments of thedisplay 400 may further include provision for the display of a contextfile for each of the forecast data and/or actual data. The context fileincludes at least a portion of the entity disclosure associated with theforecast data. For example, each of the forecast data represented on thedisplay 400 may include a hyperlink to the associated context file.Alternatively or in combination, the context file may appear on thedisplay 400 when a user positions a computer mouse icon over theforecast data (e.g., “rollover text”).

FIG. 5 shows another screen shot of an exemplary investment guidancedisplay 500 generated by the system of FIG. 1. Shown in FIGS. 4 and 5,the user may select a time period for which to display data (e.g.,forecast, actual and analyst data) via the time selector 406/506. Forexample, the user may select “Current Guidance” (e.g., providing datafor the current fiscal year) as shown in FIG. 4 or “Previous Guidance”(e.g., providing data for any prior fiscal year) as shown in FIG. 5. Theuser may select a previous year and/or a particular quarter within theprevious year (shown in FIG. 5). When a current or previous time periodis selected, the user may select “Redraw Chart” to regenerate theguidance data display 400/500 for the selected time period.

The displays 400 and 500 may further include an options selector 420 and520, respectively. The options selector 420/520 allows the user tofurther customize the display 400/500 by choosing options such as“Initial Guidance,” “Actual” or actual results, “Revisions,” “Same Q.Previous Year” or same quarter in the previous year, and/or “AllGuidance.” For example, a user may select to display an actual value 540of EPS from a previous year (shown as “P” on the second chart portion510) (e.g., “P”) as well as the actual value 536 for the current year.Furthermore, a user may selector to display analyst data and/or entityforecast ratings (not shown) on either of the FIG. 4 or 5.

Provision may be included in any of the displays 300-500 to include aselectable characteristic for defining a frequency for which to transmitthe display to the user interface. For example, a user may select bywhat means and what frequency to receive forecast data, actual data,and/or any of the displays 300-500. For example, a user may choose toreceive a display on demand in an Internet browser. The user may furtherchoose to receive particular forecast data (e.g., “alerts”) and/or adisplay via email at selected times and/or intervals (e.g., asdisclosure events issue).

Advantages of the present invention include the provision of a singlesource for investors and/or other interested parties to access allentity-issued forecast data and actual data. The present inventionfurther includes the advantageous provision of context to theentity-issued data.

A further advantage of the present invention is the provision of aforecast rating to provide investors and/or other interested partieswith an indication of the reliability and accuracy of the guidance datareceiving from a particular corporation or entity. The forecast rating,as well as other characteristics of the present invention, provide forcomparison of forecast data against performance indicators such asanalyst estimates and actual data.

Although the invention has been described with reference to a particulararrangement of parts, features and the like, these are not intended toexhaust all possible arrangements or features, and indeed manymodifications and variations will be ascertainable to those of skill inthe art.

1. A system for providing entity investment guidance via a communicationnetwork, said system comprising: a server; at least one entity-issuedentity disclosure received by the server via the communication network;a storage accessible by the server, said storage including: at least oneforecast data extracted from the at least one entity disclosure, saidforecast data indicative of a projection of an entity performanceparameter, and a context file for each of the forecast data, the contextfile including at least a portion of the entity disclosure associatedwith the forecast data; and a user interface in communication with theserver, wherein the server generates an investment guidance display ofthe forecast data and the context file and transmits the display to theuser interface via the communication network.
 2. The system according toclaim 1, wherein the forecast data is partitioned in the storage basedon a time period of the entity disclosure.
 3. The system according toclaim 2, wherein the time period is selected from a group consisting ofa quarter and a fiscal year.
 4. The system according to claim 2, furthercomprising: a first selectable characteristic displayed on said userinterface and in communication with said server, said first selectablecharacteristic for defining at least one of the time periods for whichto display the forecast data and the context files.
 5. The systemaccording to claim 2 wherein the investment guidance display illustratesthe following: an initial set of the forecast data from a first portionof at least one of the time periods, which is presented in a firstmanner on the display, a revised set of the forecast data from a secondportion of at least one of the time periods, which is presented in asecond manner on the display, a variance of the forecast data over eachof the at least one of the time periods, which is presented in a thirdmanner on the display, and the context file, which is presented in afourth manner on the display.
 6. The system according to claim 1,wherein the investment guidance display is transmitted to the userinterface via email.
 7. The system according to claim 4, furthercomprising: a second selectable characteristic displayed on said userinterface and in communication with said server, said second selectablecharacteristic for selecting user preferences and defining a frequencyfor which to transmit the display to the user interface.
 8. The systemaccording to claim 6, wherein the investment guidance display istransmitted after each of the at least one entity disclosures istransmitted to the server.
 9. The system according to claim 6, whereinthe investment guidance display is transmitted at least once per day.10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the entity disclosure is apress release.
 11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the entitydisclosure is a conference call.
 12. The system according to claim 1,wherein the entity disclosure is an SEC filing.
 13. The system accordingto claim 1, wherein the entity performance parameter is aneamings-per-share.
 14. The system according to claim 1, wherein theentity performance parameter is a revenue.
 15. The system according toclaim 1, wherein the entity performance parameter is an income.
 16. Asystem for providing entity investment guidance via a communicationnetwork, said system comprising: a server; at least one entity-issuedentity disclosure received by the server via the communication network;a storage accessible by the server, said storage including: at least oneforecast data extracted from the at least one entity disclosure, saidforecast data indicative of a projection of an entity performanceparameter, at least one actual data extracted from the at least oneentity disclosure, said actual data indicative of an actual entityperformance parameter, and an entity forecast rating generated from acomparison of the forecast data to the actual data; and a user interfacein communication with the server, wherein the server generates aninvestment guidance display of the forecast data, the actual data, andthe entity forecast rating and transmits the display to the userinterface via the communication network.
 17. The system according toclaim 16, wherein the forecast data is partitioned in the storage basedon a time period of the entity disclosure.
 18. The system according toclaim 17, wherein the time period is selected from a group consisting ofa quarter and a fiscal year.
 19. The system according to claim 17,further comprising: a first selectable characteristic displayed on saiduser interface and in communication with said server, said firstselectable characteristic for defining at least one of the time periodsfor which to display the forecast data, the actual data, and the entityforecast rating.
 20. The system according to claim 17 wherein theinvestment guidance display illustrates the following: an initial set ofthe forecast data from a first portion of at least one of the timeperiods, which is presented in a first manner on the display, a revisedset of the forecast data from a second portion of at least one of thetime periods, which is presented in a second manner on the display, avariance of the forecast data over each of the at least one of the timeperiods, which is presented in a third manner on the display, the actualdata for the at least one of the time periods, which is presented in afourth manner on the display.
 21. The system according to claim 16,wherein the investment guidance display is transmitted to the userinterface via email.
 22. The system according to claim 19, furthercomprising: a second selectable characteristic displayed on said userinterface and in communication with said server, said second selectablecharacteristic for selecting user preferences and defining a frequencyfor which to transmit the display to the user interface.
 23. The systemaccording to claim 16, wherein the entity performance parameter is anearnings-per-share.
 24. A system for providing entity investmentguidance via a communication network, said system comprising: a server;at least one entity-issued entity disclosure received by the server viathe communication network; at least one analyst data received by theserver via the communication network, said analyst data indicative of aprojection of an entity performance parameter; a storage accessible bythe server, said storage including: at least one forecast data extractedfrom the at least one entity disclosure, said forecast data indicativeof a projection of an entity performance parameter, the analyst data,and an entity forecast rating generated from a comparison of theforecast data to the analyst data; and a user interface in communicationwith the server, wherein the server generates an investment guidancedisplay of the forecast data, the analyst data, and the entity forecastrating and transmits the display to the user interface via thecommunication network.
 25. The system according to claim 24, wherein theforecast data is partitioned in the storage based on a time period ofthe entity disclosure.
 26. The system according to claim 25, wherein thetime period is selected from a group consisting of a quarter and afiscal year.
 27. The system according to claim 25, further comprising: afirst selectable characteristic displayed on said user interface and incommunication with said server, said first selectable characteristic fordefining at least one of the time periods for which to display theforecast data, the analyst data, and the entity forecast rating.
 28. Thesystem according to claim 25 wherein the investment guidance displayillustrates the following: an initial set of the forecast data from afirst portion of at least one of the time periods, which is presented ina first manner on the display, a revised set of the forecast data from asecond portion of at least one of the time periods, which is presentedin a second manner on the display, a variance of the forecast data overeach of the at least one of the time periods, which is presented in athird manner on the display, and the analyst data for the at least oneof the time periods, which is presented in a fourth manner on thedisplay.
 29. The system according to claim 24, wherein the investmentguidance display is transmitted to the user interface via email.
 30. Thesystem according to claim 27, further comprising: a second selectablecharacteristic displayed on said user interface and in communicationwith said server, said first selectable characteristic for selectinguser preferences and defining a frequency for which to transmit thedisplay to the user interface.
 31. A system for providing entityinvestment guidance via a communication network, comprising: a server;at least one entity-issued entity disclosure received by the server viathe communication network; at least one analyst data received by theserver via the communication network, said analyst data indicative of aprojection of an entity performance parameter; a storage accessible bythe server, said storage including: at least one forecast data extractedfrom the at least one entity disclosure, said forecast data indicativeof a projection of an entity performance parameter, at least one actualdata extracted from the at least one entity disclosure, said actual dataindicative of an actual entity performance parameter, the analyst data,a first entity forecast rating generated from a comparison of theforecast data to the actual data, a second entity forecast ratinggenerated from a comparison of the forecast data to the analyst data,and a user interface in communication with the server, wherein theserver generates an investment guidance display of the forecast data,the actual data, the analyst data, and the first and second entityforecast ratings and transmits the display to the user interface via thecommunication network.
 32. A method for providing investment guidancebased on entity-issued disclosure, comprising the steps of: receiving atleast one entity-issued disclosure; generating a transcript of the atleast one entity-issued disclosure; extracting a forecast data and anactual data from the transcript; storing the forecast data and theactual data in a storage; generating an entity forecast rating based ona comparison of the forecast data to the actual data; generating aninvestment guidance display of the forecast data, actual data, andentity forecast rating.
 33. The method according to claim 32, furthercomprising the step of: verifying the forecast data and the actual data.